SEATTLE: MacKenzie Scott, philanthropist, author and former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has married a Seattle science teacher who expressed gratitude "for the exceptional privilege it will be to partner in giving away assets with the potential to do so much good when shared."

Dan Jewett, who made the announcement in a letter to the website of the non-profit organisation the Giving Pledge on Saturday, said he never imagined he would be in a position to talk about giving away significant wealth during his lifetime in order to make a difference in other people's lives.

Jewett has been a teacher for decades and most recently taught chemistry at the private Lakeside School, where Scott's children attended.

"And now, in a stroke of happy coincidence, I am married to one of the most generous and kind people I know - and joining her in a commitment to pass on an enormous financial wealth to serve others," Jewett wrote.

After donating US$1.68bil to 116 non-profits, universities, community development groups and legal organisations last July, Scott asked a team of advisers to help her "accelerate” her 2020 giving with immediate help to those financially gutted by the pandemic.

Scott went on to donate a total of US$5.7bil in 2020 by asking community leaders to help identify 512 organisations for seven- and eight-figure gifts, including food banks, human-service organisations, and racial-justice charities.

She was listed as No. 2 among the 50 Americans who gave the most to charity last year, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual rankings.

Bezos topped the list by donating US$10bil to launch the Bezos Earth Fund.

 - AP